Quick Look: Avocado Salad
- Fresh & Flavorful: Loaded with avocado, grilled sweet corn, cucumber, feta, and fresh herbs.
- Easy Summer Salad: Perfect for BBQs, cookouts, and weeknight dinners.
- Great Texture: Creamy, crunchy, fresh, and packed with flavor.
- Customizable: Add black beans, tomatoes, grilled chicken breasts, an easy hard boiled egg or shrimp.
- Meal Prep Friendly: Prep ahead and add avocado and dressing right before serving.
- Best During Corn Season: A fresh avocado corn salad everyone loves!
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Looking for Another Fresh Salad Recipe?
If you love them as much as we do, you definitely need to try our strawberry burrata salad!
Why I Keep Making This Recipe
- It’s Different: Unlike many avocado salad recipes, this version has lots of texture and flavor from grilled sweet corn, crunchy cucumber, fresh dill, creamy avocado, and a homemade basil feta dressing. It’s fresh, hearty, and perfect during sweet corn season.
- Versatile: Serve as the main dish with a fun protein option OR as a delicious side salad for a family meal or cookout with friends!
What You Will Need
Be sure to see the recipe card below for a full listing of ingredients, instructions, and estimated nutritional information.
- fresh basil – the primary flavor in the vinaigrette dressing on top!
- feta cheese – perfect addition to the avocado salad dressing and on top of this healthy lunch.
- extra virgin olive oil – base to any homemade salad dressing. Option to sub with avocado oil.
- rice vinegar – added for just a little bit of tanginess.
- fresh corn on the cob – an essential ingredient of the summer, highly recommend cutting grilled corn off the cob but any corn kernels will work (i.e. canned corn or frozen corn).
- romaine lettuce – the base of this easy salad, but any mixed greens would work – iceberg lettuce, fresh spinach, etc.
- ripe avocados – one of our all-time favorite, basic ingredients!
- crisp cucumber & green onion – more fresh veggies on top to add lots of crispness.
- fresh dill – a fresh herb that is a great addition to really lighten and brighten just about anything.
How To Make An Avocado Salad
Step 1: Place all of the dressing ingredients in a small food processor or blender and blend on high until smooth.
Step 2: Grill your sweet corn. Let cool slightly and then cut the kernels away from cob.
Step 3: Add ingredients to a large serving bowl and toss to combine with the salad dressing – enjoy!
Best Way To Serve An Avocado Salad + Variations
This fresh avocado salad is so versatile and can be enjoyed so many different ways!
- Main Dish with Added Protein: We love to eat it as a main dish and if we feel like we need some protein, we add some
- Side Dish Vibes: Or split this salad recipe into smaller bowls and enjoy as a side dish recipe with some
- Add Some Bread: Just make sure you also enjoy with some grilled bread or crusty bread.
How To Keep Avocados from Turning Brown
Wait to dice the avocado until just before serving. Tossing avocado gently in dressing or a little lime juice can also help slow browning.
Recipe FAQ
Absolutely! This salad is great as-written in the recipe card, but it would also be great with chopped red onion, bell pepper, easy crispy shallots, juicy tomatoes (cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes), fresh cilantro, fresh parsley, etc.
Yes, the dressing can be made and stored in the fridge. The corn can be cooked and kept in the fridge. And most of the other fresh ingredients can each be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator, just mix together when ready to eat. Also, be sure to wait on cutting the avocado until serving so it doesn’t turn brown.
Fresh avocado will turn brown fairly quickly after cutting into the skin. It can still be eaten, but doesn’t look great. Therefore, it is best to wait until serving to cut an avocado!
Made this recipe and loved it?!
We would love it if you would take a minute and leave a star rating and review – it is also helpful if you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe to share that as well. THANK YOU!
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Ingredients
Basil Feta Vinaigrette:
- 3/4 cup light olive oil
- 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled (regular or dairy-free)
- 0.5 oz fresh basil, chopped
- 1 tablespoon shallot, minced
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- salt and pepper, to taste
Grilled Corn
- 2-3 ears of sweet corn, shucked (remove outer leaves and silk strands)
- extra virgin olive oil
- kosher salt
Avocado Salad:
- 1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped
- 1 1/2 avocados, diced
- 4 oz feta cheese, crumbled (reg. or dairy-free)
- 1/2 English cucumber, diced
- 1/2 cup green onions, sliced
- 1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped
- kosher salt + ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Dressing: Place ingredients in a small food processor. Blend 3-4 minutes until smooth (if the feta doesn't become completely smooth, that's okay – the flavor is amazing). Taste and add any additional salt and pepper, as needed. Set aside.
- Grill Corn: Ensure grill grates are clean and preheat grill to 450℉. Place clean, shucked ears of sweet corn on a plate or baking sheet. Very lightly drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and use your hands to massage oil into each ear of corn. Sprinkle lightly with kosher salt. Grill sweet corn on direct heat for a total of 10-15 minutes, turning once or twice with grill tongs. Remove when corn is slightly charred. Let cool slightly and then cut kernels away from the cob.
- Build Salad: Divide lettuce, avocado, cucumber, feta cheese, green onions, dill and grilled corn kernels between 4 bowls.
- Serve: Add dressing and toss to combine. Add fresh cracked pepper, as desired and serve with some grilled bread!
Notes
- Baked Corn Alternative: if you don’t want to grill your corn you can prep it the same as written above, but wrap in foil and place on baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes at 425 degrees F. Unwrap and place under broiler until starts to char, just a bit.
- Canned Corn: Canned corn will also work in a pinch.
- Dairy-Free: easily sub in a dairy-free feta cheese (crumbled) to make this recipe dairy-free.
- Protein: want to serve with a protein – try some grilled chicken breasts, grilled chicken thighs, grilled shrimp skewers or grilled ribeye steak!
Nutrition
BLM says
Fresh and delicious – love this salad!
Liz says
This recipe makes me so happy. I wish I could make it every single day.
Thomas says
A fresh, lighter salad that works especially well in the summer. The basil feta dressing really brings everything together, and adding chicken breast makes it a great option for lunches.
Laurie says
Really good. A beautiful presentation and so fresh and delicious. I didn’t change anything but I do like a little more tang in my dressings so next time I will add some lemon or white wine vinegar. The ratio of 1:12 is too oil heavy IMO.
Erin says
Glad you enjoyed it, Laurie! And yes, feel free to tweak the dressing – everyone is different with what they prefer!
Lisa says
3/4 cup of olive oil seems like a lot. Is that not reflected in the calories? How much of the dressing do you use?
Erin says
Hi Lisa – the dressing is included in the nutrition facts so it is assumed all of it is used. The nutrition facts provided are an estimation so feel free to calculate on your own if you prefer! Hope that helps!
Kathy says
If I’m using fresh basil from our garden, about how many cups is 0.5oz? I don’t have a scale. Thanks in advance
Erin says
Hi Kathy – .5oz fresh basil is roughly 1/4 cup loosely packed. Hope that helps!
Kathy says
Seasoned or UNseasoned rice vinegar? And, not EVOO? I never buy light olive oil. But maybe the EVOO will mess with the rice vinegar (?)
Erin says
Unseasoned rice vinegar, Kathy! I will update the recipe card – thanks!
jenalys says
SO DELICIOUS. the amount of dressing was a very good amount, def more than 4 servings in my book, so we chopped up some extra cucumbers, corn, and romaine. also added more vinegar, but other than those changes, this was amazinnnng. I’ll probably try with some grilled shrimp next time!
Bridget Montag says
Grilled shrimp would be amazing on this salad! Glad you loved it and thank you so much for your review!
Sarah says
I rarely like anything healthy and I am obsessed with this salad. I am usually a bread, cheese, and ice cream kinda girl but this salad is addicting. I’ve made it every week (sometimes twice) since trying it out. I do use low fat feta and the flavor is still fantastic. The amount of dressing comes out to be a lot but it works well on other salads and dishes and I find myself using it on other meals throughout the week. Definitely a must try!
Bridget Montag says
Awesome – so glad you are loving it! Thanks for leaving a review, Sarah!
Katie says
Can’t wait to try this! How long will the dressing keep when made ahead of time?
Bridget Montag says
You could definitely make the dressing the day before you plan to use it, but if it sits in the fridge for too long the basil will begin to turn a brown-ish color. Just be sure to store it in the fridge and give it a mix before using.
Stout says
5oz of Basil is an incredibly large amount.
Erin says
Ah sorry – it’s supposed to be .5oz – just updated it! Thanks!
David says
The basil amount stays the same for all 3 size preparations. I’m guessing the .5oz is for the smallest, then just double or triple for the other two.
Bridget Montag says
Correct, not sure why it isn’t changing the amount of basil. We will look into that and sorry about any confusion.